What a night: the gigs that changed music history
It's true that with the advent of Spotify and Youtube, we have access to any song we want, any time we want it. But there are some things that, until now, you could not bottle; some performances that just don't translate through tiny tinny headphones on the Central line at 7am.
The atmosphere of a gig, the combined energy of the room, the infinitesimal nuances only those stood beside the player's strumming fingers could hear. The nights people fell in love, set fires, smashed their lives to pieces.
Finally, we can bring the organic sound of live music in our own homes like never before. Feel the air tremble once again. Sense the anticipation as musicians take their first, deep breaths before a song. Close your eyes and feel the earth move, hear the sweat drip and experience the world change. These are the gigs that changed history.
Hearing recordings of the 'high priestess of soul' in concert is enough to send a chill down your spine. So, Imagine being there in 1963 – at the crucible of the civil rights movement, in the same room as that unmistakable voice, that's like gravel, fury, coffee and cream – as Nina Simone sings Mississippi Goddamn and unleashes a deluge of black anger.
